Wyoming Newspapers Inc. buys Examiner, Roundup

by Cat Urbigkit

Two Rivers Publishing Inc. of Pinedale sold the Sublette Examiner this week to Wyoming Newspapers Inc. Although the ownership of the paper has changed, the existing newspaper staff was retained by the new owner. Rhonda Swain will now have a dual role – that of editor/general manager.

Wyoming Newspapers is a subsidiary of News Media Corp., a company that owns 59 newspapers in nine states.

The Pinedale Roundup was also acquired by Wyoming Newspapers Inc. this week. Both newspapers will remain independent.

The acquisition of the Examiner and the Roundup brings the number of Wyoming newspapers owned by Wyoming Newspapers to 11, including the Kemmerer Gazette, Uinta County Herald, Torrington Telegram, the Air Force base’s Warren Sentinel, Wheatland’s Platte County Record Times, Lusk Herald, Lingle Guide, Guernsey Gazette, and the Bridger Valley Pioneer.

The Examiner was founded in 2001 by Two Rivers Publishing, a partnership involving Rhonda Swain, Cat Urbigkit, Sheri Nolan and Deanne Swain. The partners cited the over whelming community support for the new newspaper that made it such a viable business enterprise. The Examiner was not on the market, but News Media Corp. CEO John Tompkins made the partners an offer they couldn’t refuse, including a pledge to work with the community to continue to grow this community newspaper.

All four partners plan to continue in their current staff positions at the Sublette Examiner, while continuing the Two Rivers partnership as it expands into book publishing.